As the new year starts, parents
and students alike are faced with that thing that can be either friend or foe,
an impetus or a stumbling block. That
“thing” is STRESS.
New class schedules. Kids to get off to school before you go to
work. New professors to impress or (at
the very least) learn to understand.
Increased traffic on the streets.
All of these very necessary and normal activities and factors can create
tremendous stress for all of us.
Stress can kill you. You’d be surprised to discover how many
full-blown illnesses have their beginnings in unchecked stress. From irritable bowel syndrome to migraine
headaches, the body is going to react to stress one way or another.
Stress can be both internal and
external.
External stress is generally caused
by forces beyond your control. For
example, deadlines set by superiors, field trips orchestrated by school
administrators, tasks that show up at the last minute, or other things that pop
up, none of which you can control. You
can only respond.
Internal stress is typically
caused by your reaction to what is going on around you. Your reaction is the only aspect you can
absolutely control. Know that
controlling your response to stress goes a long way toward mitigating its
effects.
We all experience stress. Let’s face it: it is a necessary part of life. Besides being necessary, it is oftentimes
unavoidable. Something to consider as
you think about trying to avoid your stressors is that without stress, there
would be no growth. Like exercising
without any resistance added, certain muscles require stress for growth and
strength training. Stress often pushes
us toward those tasks that are locked in cycles of procrastination. Stress can be a good thing. But in order for that to be true, it MUST be
properly managed.
My suggestion is that you change
the way you perceive stress … and make it work for you, not against. Knowing that you will be faced with
unavoidable stress, here are a few tips to add to your stress management
routine.
·
Eat a healthy, nutrient-rich breakfast. An often overlooked exercise, your body will
not have the fuel it needs to function and
mitigate stress with just a hot cup of coffee.
·
Get plenty of rest and a good night’s
sleep. Sleep-deprived people start the
race under a tremendous amount of internal stress. It is important to remember that it doesn’t
matter how much you have to do, you need rest.
And if you think you don’t,
your body does. By the way, your mind
needs rest, too.
·
Establish priorities and stick to them. When faced with a list of tasks too long to
complete, knowing what your priorities are helps to immediately put the list
into its proper perspective.
·
Do the best you can what the tools and time you
have. If you can authentically make that
statement, then know that you have done all you are capable of doing. Another person’s expectations for more will
never provide the fuel for doing more than you are capable of doing.
·
Tell the truth.
Sometimes, stress is created by our inability or unwillingness to tell
the hard truths. While initially
uncomfortable, a few minutes of discomfort at the onset of a difficult
conversation is infinitely healthier than days, weeks or months of internal
anxiety simply because you did not have the courage to speak truth.
This brief visit to the stress we
all are facing (or soon will) is meant to help you change your perspective
about the stress in your life.
Hopefully, I’ve given you a few new tools to add to your toolkit or, at
the very least, a different way of thinking about stress.
By Jayne Jackson, MCTAC Project Manager
We'd be remiss if we didn't mention that at Illinois Tech, we all have access to the LifeWorks Employee Assistance Program, a free, confidential service available 24/7 online or on the phone to assist with a variety of work-life balance issues.
LifeWorks will be at Illinois Tech on August 27 and 30 for a noon presentation on Navigating Workplace Change. Click here for more information and to register.
